Billionaire Usmanov Pays Russian Soccer Coach's Salary Arrears

Billionaire Alisher Usmanov has given the Russian Football Union 300 million rubles ($5.5 million) to pay salary arrears owed to the coach of the national team, Fabio Capello.

Capello took over as head coach in 2012 and his contract was extended until the end of the 2018 World Cup, which Russia will host.

Capello reportedly is the world's best-paid soccer coach, with an annual salary of 7 million euros ($8 million). But he was owed almost 5 million euros in back pay. He has come under fire recently due to poor results.

"On the eve of the World Cup that will happen on our soil, the coach is of capital importance to the national team," Usmanov said in a statement.

The 61-year-old Uzbek-born oligarch built his wealth through metal and mining operations and is currently ranked by Forbes magazine as the third-richest person in Russia, with a net worth of $14.2 billion.

In February, he paid 400 million rubles when Capello, 69, had not been paid in seven months.